Denise Jaden

One Sentence Summary: When a man falls to his death at a town hall meeting, Mallory isn't sure it was an accident.

Overall

Murder at the Town Hall is the third book in the Mallory Beck Cozy Culinary Caper series. It features a fast-paced murder mystery and a cast of fun characters, including a cat that's probably a better detective than all of them. I really liked that this book hinted at darker things under the surface of the town, but something felt off between Mallory and Amber, which was show more hopefully intentional, but somewhat distracting. Overall, though, the characters were perfectly consistent, the mystery quick yet offering a deeper look beneath the surface, and a town that isn't quite as idyllic as it first appeared.

Extended Thoughts

Almost a year ago, Mallory Beck's husband tragically died, but, thanks to a teen girl and an attractive police officer, she's started expanding her circle beyond herself and her cat. In this third installment of the Mallory Beck Cozy Culinary Caper series, Mallory is attending a town hall meeting alongside a teacher who once taught her regarding the possible closure of the local library. But murder has a way of following her.

When a man falls from the top of the town hall, Mallory isn't so sure it was an accident or suicide. With her grumpy cat detective Hunch and her teen friend Amber, Mallory is intent on helping her cop friend, Alex, who was recently promoted to detective, shine in the eyes of his chief, who has it out for Alex. In the process, though, they uncover something far deeper going on in town.

I love the Mallory Beck books for so many reasons, and Murder at the Town Hall just keeps the mysteries going the way I love them. It's fast-paced and a quick read, but it's full of details further sharpening the small West Virginia town in my mind. It also has plenty of food, a cat who chooses to tolerate Mallory (he was her late husband's cat), and a slowly developing romance.

I love books with food and cats, so this series is always a winner in my eyes. Mallory used to work in the food industry and is now teaching her young friend Amber to cook, so she never goes anywhere without a food offering and there's plenty of other food scenes to make me hungry. I kind of wish there had been more food in this particular book, but it takes place over just two days, so it was fast and there wasn't much time to cook. But there was plenty of Hunch. I adore Mallory's cat. He's practically a detective on his own, nosing around and finding unlikely clues. He was such a big part of solving this mystery and I really love how he's developing his own human-like personality. The way he communicates with the humans around him is so much fun.

Despite the story being really fast and the murder solved in almost no time, it was surprisingly layered. It hints at deeper problems under the surface, painting Honeysuckle Grove with a darker light. It was actually great to see it as less than idyllic and I enjoyed being introduced to problems that lie deep in the fabric of the town. That said, while I enjoyed how quickly the story went, it did also feel a little unrealistically fast. Mallory and Amber really packed in a lot in one day, but I was disappointed Amber wasn't putting the same time into her school studies. It felt irresponsible to me, but I'm also hoping something really positive comes out of it for Amber one day.

I think the only thing that really felt off about Murder at the Town Hall was the way Mallory and Amber interacted. It was noticeably different, though I still liked Amber's take charge approach and her fast thinking. She's quick on her feet and Mallory is just stuck racing to catch up. Sometimes Mallory felt little more than a chaperone, but she's also an integral part of the series as something of a conduit between the professionals and the readers, explaining processes and theories without having to take the reader out to dumb it down. I just wish Mallory and Amber's interactions had felt as friendly and warm as they did in the first two books, but I also think Jaden is hinting at something to come and I'm intrigued by what it will all mean for Mallory, Amber, and Alex.

There's a very slowly blooming romance in this series. Mallory, understandably, isn't ready to date. I really liked how Jaden handled her grief and her process. It's present without being overwhelming and still leaves a door open for something between Mallory and Alex. Seriously, there's a scene at the end between them that I absolutely swooned over!

Lastly, I wanted to mention the Christian aspect of this series. Mallory is part of a church and God is mentioned several times, but I never felt religion was pushed on the reader. Christianity is clearly a big part of the characters' lives. But it's handled very delicately and, as a non-religious individual, I found it never distracted or bothered me. It was just there. I really appreciated how it was presented.

Murder at the Town Hall was a fun cozy mystery that hints at something darker going on in Honeysuckle Grove. The characters were all just as I love them and the story fast-paced. There was something about Amber that bothered me throughout the whole book, but I'm hoping it was intentional. Overall, a great third book in the series that still manages to hit all the right notes.

Thank you to Denise Jaden for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own. show less

Fun, fish-out-of-water murder mystery.

Murder in the Hidden Cargo Hold is the first book in author Denise Jaden’s cozy Olivia Ocean Cruise Ship Mysteries. It features a new crewmate and junior photographer, Olivia Ocean, as she embarks on her first contract cruise aboard the Moonlight Majesty. An engaging protagonist, a toxic job environment, and an intriguing plot combine to make this a great debut for this new series.

Olivia has been caring for her grandparents since she was young, from show more before her grandfather passed to the recent death of her beloved grandmother. Since her grandmother had spoken so fondly of her time working on cruise ships when she was young, when Olivia spies a job opening for a photographer on the Moonlight Majesty, she jumps at the opportunity to apply. Her first day on the ship is chaotic; it’s embarkation day for a 7-day cruise, and everyone is so busy with their tasks to get underway that no instruction or onboarding is given to Olivia, except for the safety briefing. She’s literally handed a camera and sent to find her own way to take pictures of passengers as they board without any guidance. She does her best but is a complete fish out of water. A late-night errand to a cargo hold for photo paper, though, nets her a tiny stowaway kitten, which leads to her discovery of a dead man. As the one to find the murder victim, the hunky head of security, Miles Blackwell, initially treats Olivia with suspicion, so she feels it’s in her best interests to stay as close as possible to the ensuing investigation and the handsome investigator.

While cruise ship jobs sound glamorous, the reality is anything but, and Olivia finds herself working impossibly long hours without a break with some fairly toxic coworkers. Thankfully, her new roommate, Becky, turns out to be welcoming and friendly and helps Olivia to find her sea legs. In the days that follow, Olivia and Miles work together, comparing notes, sharing information about the investigation, and coming to rely on one another. I enjoyed their slow-burn attraction to one another, but because I’m suspicious of everyone in the story except Olivia, I continually hoped that Miles was on the up and up.

The plot moves quickly, with the murder occurring on the first evening of the cruise. As Olivia works to settle into her job, she tries to impress her obnoxious supervisor with her skills and willingness to do whatever tasks he needs doing without complaint while secretly collecting clues from the dead man’s coworkers. I enjoyed the presence of the little kitten, Pickle, and his extraordinary ability to point our sleuths in the right direction when needed. The scenes set throughout the different areas of the ship were interesting and fun, and I could relate to Olivia’s confusion over the layout; these ships are huge. While I had an inkling of the who-dun-it, it wasn’t until the resolution that I found out the surprising why. I look forward to more adventures for Olivia and, hopefully, Miles aboard the Moonlight Majesty.

I recommend MURDER IN THE HIDDEN CARGO HOLD to cozy mystery readers, especially those who enjoy cruise life. show less

Do you remember back when you were a kid? Blissfully riding your bike around the neighborhood without a care in the world when suddenly the chain slips. You peddle your little heart out just hoping a link will miraculously catch on a tooth of the cog. You try switching gears. Sometimes you get lucky and it does catch, but the peddling is either too fast or too difficult. You get off your bike and try to force the chain back into place. The cog bites your finger, the chain leaves a greasy show more residue. Realization then hits you. The chain needs to be gently guided onto the cog. The timing needs to be perfect. The two parts will mesh when the time is right.

Eli knows where he wants to be. He knows who he wants to be with, but self-doubt leads him to a different cog. He talks himself into believing this new life is the one he is supposed to be living. Personally, I wanted to knock some sense into his teenage head, but I just had to sit back and hope he’d figure things out.

Kass knows who she wants to be with, but she needs to finish dealing with the consequences of her previous foolish decision. She’s reached out to him, but their worlds aren’t ready to mesh yet. When she’s finally able to search for him, circumstances bring about another round of self-doubt.
Again, I am truly loving this saga. The “will they” or “won’t they” has been driving me crazy. I simply cannot wait to get my hands on Track Five!! show less

One Sentence Summary: Mallory expected to have a fun time at the church picnic with her young friend Amber, but a wedding was scheduled at the park at the same time as the picnic, making for one very unhappy bride and the perfect opportunity for murder.

I adored the first book in this series, Murder at Mile Marker 18, so was thrilled when Denise Jaden immediately offered the second book for me to review. I love a good cozy, and, seriously, extra points for culinary cozies that also provide show more recipes. The first book was so much fun, the characters so great together, and the grumpy cat so cute that I couldn't jump on this one fast enough. For as short as these mysteries seem to be (or maybe I just devour them so fast they seem short), there's really a ton packed on, and, boy, do they deliver!

The Plot: A Great Follow-Up to the First Book

Murder at the Church Picnic picks up right where Murder at Mile Marker 18 left off. At the end of the first book, Amber had invited Mallory to attend a church picnic with her, along with a casserole. Of course, Mallory is still mourning her husband's death, so going out is a little nerve wracking for her, so it's a good thing Amber has enough spunk for the both of them.

But things quickly get out of hand when it turns out a wedding was scheduled for the same time and place as the picnic. The pastor tries his best to soothe the angry bride, but she's young, wealthy, and spoiled, so demands things go her way. Which also leaves open a huge opportunity for an angry someone to carry out a seemingly perfect murder with everyone watching.

As the faithful and loving widow of a popular mystery writer, Mallory can't seem but get herself involved, especially since her teenage friend Amber, her cop (and childhood crush) friend Alex, and her late husband's stubborn and hostile cat Hunch all seem ready to pull her in.

There's nothing I didn't love about this next installment in the series. Well, okay, I wish it had been longer and I wish Alex had been given more page time, but, other than that, the story, the mystery, was perfect. The thing about this series is that it seems to happen very quickly. Mallory unexpectedly finds herself falling into a crime and her cat makes her solve it (really, he does, and it's so much fun to read about his exchanges with Mallory) and then the case spirals from there like a whirlpool. Absolutely no scene is superfluous and neither does the story seem to slow down and take a deep breath. A shallow breather is given now and then so Mallory, and the reader, can process everything with the cat and sometimes a human, and then it's a headlong dive back into it. It makes this a very quick read, but also leaves me feeling quite satisfied that I got a full mystery with plenty of red herrings and just enough leads.

In this second installment of the series, Mallory is mostly on her own while Amber starts school and Alex is working hard on making detective. I liked how it incorporated the things she would know as the widow of a mystery writer to help her solve it and made her rely more on herself and her knowledge. The case was a lot of fun with a lot of threads tied around it tugging in so many different directions. Like with the first book, I never felt like I was a step ahead of Mallory and loved coming to realizations alongside her, which was probably due in part to the quick pace. Similar to the first book, it was relatively easy to figure out who did it, but there was just enough, if not a little more, danger to keep things interesting.

The Characters: More Focused on Mallory

With Amber starting school and Alex busy trying to make detective, Mallory is mostly on her own, so it was nice to spend more time with her. Though she's still grieving her husband's death, she's trying harder to get out more, mostly thanks to Amber, but also because she seems cautiously nosy and has a hard time stopping it. I got the feeling she genuinely wanted to be helpful and to have a task to keep her going, but she did have a lot of good questions and a need to know what really happened.

I did miss Amber and Alex in Murder at the Church Picnic, though I was delighted they were still just as charming and Amber was still very much a take charge kind of personality. With them off page most of the time, it gave Hunch the cat more to do. I adored all of Mallory's conversations with the cat. There's a cute, albeit begrudging, affection between the two, but only when Hunch gets a whiff of a mystery. He's definitely aptly named and the perfect sidekick for Mallory, especially in this novel.

The Setting: Expanded the Town Just Enough

As in the first book, Murder at the Church Picnic is set in the same town in West Virginia and I really felt like the town opened up a little more. Mallory spent more time out and about trying to solve the mystery and so found herself in rather interesting parts of town. There were all the usual kinds of places, the church, the park, even a community college. But a more rural area was also introduced where a family high on Mallory's suspect list lives very simply. It was fun to read about all the different parts of the town and get to know it a little better. It was also nice to see Mallory getting out more and going further afield without Amber.

Overall: A Delightful Cozy with Just Enough Danger

Murder at the Church Picnic was just as much fun as the first book. I especially loved that the danger was really front and center, making it feel a little more dangerous than the first book where the murder had already taken place. I loved getting to know Mallory better, though I wish there had been more food, but Hunch's scenes are not to be missed and kept me happy. This was a fun, quick cozy read with a mystery that had just enough threads to keep things interesting without tipping over into unmanageable. Overall, it's artfully done and I can't wait to see what the next book has in store for Mallory, Amber, and Alex.

Thank you to Denise Jaden for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own. show less